The Next Step
by XxxAnimaniacxxX
Summary: Logan can't get dates, but is desperate for one with Kendall Knight. James Diamond knows exactly how to make it happen, in a series of six simple steps. Or so he says. (Oneshot)


**This is slightly based on the kogan demo 'Next Step' but not really. I've been working on it for a while now and it's finally finished. Hope you like :P**

Logan caught himself staring again, and had to mentally whack himself over the head. The object of his affections was standing across the hallway, chatting to a friend of his and laughing at some joke they made, which would probably be funnier than anything Logan could say. His dimple showed and Logan felt a kind of fluttering in his stomach, like a butterfly. Or ten butterflies, the size of bald eagles. What difference did it make?

Logan had lived in Sherwood, aka Small Town, in Minnesota all of his life. He was seventeen now, having celebrated his birthday just after the return to school. He could remember his first day of Junior Year very well indeed. He'd gone to his first class, and to home room, no biggie. He chatted with his best friend Carlos about the summer, and the year of work that lay ahead. Carlos moaned and groaned about it, then teased Logan about how he secretly adored the learning aspect of school over the aspect of socialising with their peers. Then he had walked into English, after lunch, early because he always insisted on doing so. There were a couple of stragglers there, all with a friend or two. He was the only one without one, because Carlos skipped off to Calculus when Logan went to English. At least, he thought he was the only one. But that was when he saw him.

Kendall was new to this school. Even if Logan hadn't known every student of this grade by face and mostly by name, he still would've been able to tell. Kendall sat there at his desk, books placed on it and his hands clasped together on top of them. He looked nervous, but there was also that little glimmer of excitement in his face. He wore dark skinny jeans, ripped and frayed at the knees, dirty sneakers on his feet and a blue plaid shirt. A grey beanie was atop his head of shaggy blond hair. When he looked up and saw Logan staring at him, he gave a friendly and nervous smile before letting his eyes fall back down onto his hands. Logan swallowed nervously before walking over and sitting at the desk in front of him. "Hi," he stuttered. "I'm . . ." Oh crap, what was it?! "I'm Logan."

"I'm Kendall," the blond smiled at him, dimples in his cheeks. "Nice to meet you." He had a slight twang in his accent, barely noticeable, but Logan picked it up nevertheless.

"Where are you from?" Logan asked him.

"Kansas, I moved here in June." Kendall bit his lip, smiling shyly. "It's still all a bit unfamiliar. But I've made some friends, so . . ."

"Yeah? Who?"

"Mercedes Griffin? And Jo and Dak and Jett and Camille. They invited me to sit with them at lunch, they're really nice."

"Yeah. Yeah they are." Logan swallowed, and turned around as the bell rang, the rest of the class, and the teacher, all filing in.

It was a typical thing that Logan should've expected. Of course the cute new kid would be invited to join the most popular kids in his grade. He was immediately off limits, more or less.

It turned out as time went on that this wasn't the case. Kendall made many efforts to talk to him, should they ever end up in the same place. But they were only brief conversations, not much depth in them. Logan wanted to spend every second of the day talking to him. He doubted he'd ever get bored of him; he was much too perfect for that.

"You're being ridiculous," Carlos said to Logan as he stuffed his books into his locker. The Latino was dressed in a thick winter jacket and gloves, as the snowfall was heavy outside. It was the last day of school before their two weeks of Christmas vacation. This meant two weeks without seeing Kendall, with the exception of Camille Roberts' party next Tuesday night. The whole grade was invited, so of course Logan was going to it. So was Carlos, because parties were his ultimate scene. "You should offer to be his date!"

"Absolutely not," Logan replied firmly, closing his locker and slipping his backpack onto his shoulders. "Most people don't really take dates to parties anymore, and he's Camille's friend. There's no way he'd take a date to hers. Even if I did have the guts or the moves to ask him. Which I don't."

They walked down the hallway towards the doors of the school. "Well, maybe at the party you'll have an opportunity."

"Look, Carlos, I can't talk to any guys or girls right, let alone even trying it on him. There's no point."

They stepped outside. Logan's eyes were automatically drawn to Kendall, who was walking across the parking lot with Mercedes and Jett. He caught Logan's eye and grinned, waving at him. Logan smiled and waved back, smitten as always.

Tuesday couldn't come soon enough.

However, when it did, and Logan dressed in his best clothes (basically a nicer sweater vest and his best jeans) and arrived at Camille's huge and pretty house, he was instantly terrified. When he arrived with Carlos, completely punctual, it seemed only half the people had arrived. "Hi guys!" Camille greeted, dressed in a pretty black dress. She hugged them both. "Glad you could make it! Drinks and food are in the kitchen! If you break anything you'll live to regret it."

"Thanks, Cam," Carlos laughed, leading Logan into the kitchen. "Come on Logie, I'm going for some snacks. Camille makes the greatest salsa dip ever."

Half an hour later, the house was full. Kendall arrived dressed in tight black jeans and a blue shirt, rolled up to his elbows. _Fuck_. He was so hot. His hair was perfect, his face was perfect, everything was perfect—

Then Dak, and two other guys materialised beside him, and his attention was focused on them. Logan sighed. Maybe he'd get a look in with him later. "Logan," Carlos said, appearing behind him. "I have an idea." When Logan turned to look at him, Carlos pointed to a girl standing in the doorway of the living room, sipping a drink. "That's Steph, you know her. You should go talk to her, see if she'll dance with you or something. It's good practice!"

Logan swallowed nervously. "Are you sure?"

"Positive." Carlos pushed Logan forward. "Now go! I'll wait here for you!"

As Logan walked towards the living room, he saw Kendall in there, dancing with Dak and Jo just for fun, laughing. The way his hips swayed was totally mesmerising. Logan had to stop and stare just for a few seconds. Then he quickly moved towards Stepanie. "Um, h-hey," he said, trying to give that kind of sexy smirk other guys did. "You l-look great tonight."

She glanced at him, unimpressed. But she was very, very pretty. "Thanks."

"Do you wanna dance?"

"Not really." And off she went.

Logan gaped after her, cheeks red. _Oh god_. He turned to glance at Carlos, who looked equally surprised, and also sympathetic. But he pointed towards another girl, and Logan gave an exhausted sigh before nodding reluctantly. _Here goes nothing._

"Nah."

"Nope."

"Sorry, but I really don't."

"I've gotta go."

"Ew."

Logan sat down on the stairs with a long, exhausted sigh. Why was he so terrible at flirting? How was he ever gonna get married like this?! Would he just end up as a lonely old man with twenty or thirty cats—

"Hey, Mitchell!"

Logan looked up to see James Diamond standing above him, grinning. He wasn't friends with James, but he didn't dislike him or anything. He just knew him. Everyone in school knew James. Or rather, knew him as the ultimate player. The hottest one. Whatever. "Hi, James."

James sat down next to Logan, nudging him playfully with his shoulder as he did. "Listen, I know we've never talked much, but I always feel like I should help people in need. It's part of my good nature."

"Huh?"

James gave an exasperated sigh. "You're slow to catch on." He leaned closer to Logan, voice lowering slightly. "I've been watching you a little. I know what you want."

Logan's eyes widened as he turned to stare at James. "Dude, are you hitting on me . . .?"

"No!" he scoffed. "I'm talking about Kendall, you dumbass. Kendall Knight. You're crushing on him but, as you probably noticed, you're shit at getting dates."

Logan grumbled to himself, standing up. He hadn't realised James had been watching, which now made it all the more embarrassing. "I'm not talking to you about this."

But James grabbed his arm and pulled him back down. "Dude, don't get all defensive! I just wanna help you."

"I don't need your help!"

"Oh, you don't? Kendall is hot. I wouldn't object to tapping that myself." His smirk vanished and he stared Logan right in the face. "But listen. He's been talking to Dak Zevon a lot lately. And I'm positive Dak is interested in him too, you're not the only one."

"Oh god, that's the end of that." Logan lay back, closing his eyes and sighing mournfully. "Dak is the guy everybody wants to date. He's handsome, smart, sporty— I have no chance."

"That's the point I'm trying to make here! But if you let me help you out, I can guarantee you that within two months at most, you'll have a date with Kendall."

But . . . " Logan frowned. "Like you said, I'm kind of hopeless . . . what makes you so sure you can help me?"

"I've helped others, I can help you too. See, I have a foolproof plan that anyone can follow. That's how I know. It's never failed yet."

Logan sighed. "Well . . . okay. I guess you can try."

"Awesome!" James cheered, hopping to his feet. "So, I'll be over at your house tomorrow, maybe oneish? I'm not getting up before noon during vacation for anyone."

"Okay, whatever. . ." Logan watched in total confusion as James walked off into the crowd.

James was hot. And confident. Surely that was how he got all his girls and guys.

Still, the others he'd helped . . . he doubted they had the same appeal, or they wouldn't have needed help from him, would they?

So how did he do it?

Seeing Kendall walk past him with Dak on his heels, Logan realised that he really, really needed to find out.

Logan didn't tell Carlos what was going on. Maybe he would at a later stage. But the next day when James arrived, he was more or less bouncing off the walls in anticipation. Would this really work?!

James arrived looking very handsome, as always. They sat down in the kitchen with cans of diet coke from the fridge. "Okay, Logan. Can you get me some paper and a pen?"

"Um, sure . . ." Logan did, and sat down.

James took the paper and the pen and took a deep breath. "Ok, listen. There are only six steps in this master plan." James started writing quickly on the paper, what looked like a long list. Logan had never been able to read upside down, so he just waited until the taller boy had finished.

James turned the page around and showed it to Logan. He looked up at James in disbelief. "You want me to follow a list?!"

"It's like a to-do list," James shrugged and grinned idly. "It works like a charm, trust me. Just read through it and let me know if you have any questions."

Totally confused, Logan began to read.

_1. Make sure he notices you - and that he knows you notice him._

_2. Flirt._

_3. Listen._

_4. Break the touch barrier._

_5. Ask him out._

_6. What makes his eyes light up?_

He looked up. "Um . . . I don't really understand."

James gave a long sigh. "We'll go step by step, alright? You're clearly slow to catch on, like I said."

Logan scowled at him.

"So, Look good and feel good," James continued, completely indifferent to Logan's annoyance. "It's not even a real step, kind of a prologue of you will. I mean, if you just took better care of your hair and wore something besides sweater vests you'd probably feel more confident, right?"

Logan swallowed. "B-but I like sweater vests . . . do I have to change myself completely?"

"No, but you could make it a little more casual, right? Think about it." James smiled at him. "You see how I dress, how Kendall dresses, how Dak dresses. And we're confident in ourselves. If you just work on your appearance a little bit more, you'll feel more confident when it comes to talk to Kendall. Does that make sense?"

"I guess so . . ."

"Listen, you know Tyler."

"That redhead kid that smells like feet?"

"The very one. And you know he's dating a Jennifer, right?"

"Everyone knows it, it's like the biggest miracle the school has ever seen."

"Well, I did that."

And that was what made Logan's mind up for him.

_**Step One**__**, which inevitably will reveal my psycho stalker ways and my deepest dark desires.**_

"Obviously, he's not gonna like you back if he doesn't notice you," James began, holding the list up for Logan to see, his forefinger pressed next to the first foolproof step. "And I know you've spoken before and everything, but I mean really notice you. Notice you as potential boyfriend material and not just that sort-of friend he occasionally greets in the hallway."

"I understand that, but the second part? I don't get it," Logan sighed. "How am I gonna show Kendall that I notice him? I would've thought it would be obvious enough . . ."

"See, that's the thing. No matter how obvious it may be to everyone else, chances are who you want to notice, doesn't. This step can be tricky, because you need a good balance." James sat across from him. "There's a look."

"A look?"

"Yup. I pretty much just call it the 'I want you' look. It's that kind of thing you see in movies, when the guy and girl just make eye contact for the first time, and there's fireworks and all that shit. Know what I'm saying?"

"I'm not sure I could pull that off," Logan replied nervously.

"Try it on me!" James grinned. "Pretend I'm Kendall, go on."

Logan gave a huff, trying to concentrate. He did his best to picture Kendall sitting in front of him, those green eyes sparkling and that cute smile . . . now, to show him he was interested . . . the look . . .

James made a face, leaning away from him. "Okay, that went a bit too stalker-rapist for my tastes. You're gonna have to tone it down a little."

"I don't know how!" Logan whined. "It's not that easy!"

"Just watch what I do." James took a deep breath, then looked up and gazed into Logan's eyes.

Logan's breath hitched, his cheeks turning pink. James had a small trace of a smile on his face, but it was that look in his eyes that had him spellbound.

_I want you._

Squeaking, Logan finally managed to look away. "That was impressive," he muttered reluctantly.

"See? Now, once you master that, imagine Kendall's reaction. You'd have him melting in your hands."

"Yeah . . . but then he'd hear me speak."

"Which is the next step of the foolproof plan. We'll move onto that when we need to. For now, focus on the look, alright? That's the most important thing."

"Okay . . . should I try again?"

Logan practiced the look for what felt like forever. He practiced it on James. He practiced it on the mirror. He practiced it in every reflective surface near him at any opportune moment. For the rest of the day. And felt like an idiot every time.

James called in the evening and the first thing he said was, "Tomorrow I want you to give it a shot."

Logan gave a startled squeak. "What?!"

"Come on, I have faith in you! You can do it! Hey, for all I know it could just come over you when you're with him—"

"But when I pictured being with him I looked like a rapist—"

"You'll be fine! Just try to stay calm. I gotta go, good luck lover boy!" And he hung up before Logan could protest any more.

Logan sighed. He wasn't sure how many chances he'd get at this. Too many mistakes and Kendall would be too creeped out by him to ever come closer than fifteen feet.

_I can do this . . . maybe. It's possible._

The next morning, Logan could barely concentrate on his classes. Especially the ones with Kendall in them. When he was sitting behind him, all he could do was stare at the back of that gorgeous blonde head. Then when he was in front of him, all he could think about was if Kendall had ever glanced at him or not. He doubted it, but there was still a little flicker of hope there.

Then at lunch, he finally saw his opportunity. He went into the library to return the book he'd borrowed for history research. Then he saw Kendall sitting at a table by himself, surrounded by loose sheets of paper, pens and some schoolbooks. It was one big unorganised mess, and normally Logan would've shuddered and gone to clean it up. But when Kendall did it, it was just so damn adorable!

He walked over slowly, knees shaking like they always did when he was terrified out of his wits. "H-hi . . ."

"Oh, hi Logan," Kendall smiled up at him from where he was sitting. "What's up?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just hanging out here, saw you, you know . . . hehe, um . . ." Logan scratched the back of his head, swallowing.

"Are you busy?"

"N-no . . ."

"Good, me either. Sit with me."

Logan did, feeling himself start to work up a sweat. "So, um . . . what were you up to?" he squeaked.

"I was trying to study for chemistry, I've got a test coming up and I really need to revise . . ."

"I'm good at chemistry," Logan blurted out, before clapping a hand up to cover his mouth. Oh god, oh god . . .

"Really?" Kendall grinned at him. "Do you have notes I could borrow, or something? Do you mind?"

Logan managed to nod his head, giving a wobbly smile.

"Thanks, I appreciate it." Kendall started closing up his books. "I guess I wouldn't find it so difficult if I actually studied more, but I just get so bored . . ." He gave a small, light laugh that reminded Logan of angels and all that other gorgeous stuff as he picked up his notebook and showed Logan the first page. "This time I drew a dragon. Last time I'm pretty sure it was the Matrix."

Logan looked at the rough pencil drawing. The flames erupting from the dragon's mouth swirled around the border, some small scribbles of red pen added to the fine lines. "This is really good."

"You think so?"

"Yeah, it's great. I never knew you could draw."

"I'm more of the music type, but sometimes when I get bored I have a go . . ."

"Really, you're talented. It's amazing." Logan looked up from the drawing and into Kendall's eyes.

The blonde gave a sweet smile, cheeks flushing slightly at what Logan guessed may have been the compliments. "Thanks . . ."

Logan then remembered the look. _Okay, give it a try . . . just think of how James did it, with that small smile and the look in his eyes . . . god Kendall you're so gorgeous, please know I notice you, please please please . . . no, shit. Desperate thoughts equal rapist faces . . .!_

Kendall's eyes had widened slightly. _Oh shit, I failed!_

But then Logan noticed that his cheeks had turned very pink. Kendall looked down, a ghost of a smile on his lips as he started picking up his books and notes when the bell rang. "I'll see you around . . ."

And Logan, as he saw the smile spread across Kendall's face when he thought he wasn't looking, realised he hadn't failed after all.

When he described Kendall's reaction to James later on, he was proven right. "I told you!" James congratulated him, clapping him on the shoulder. "You just had to be with him for all those feelings to come alive! And now you can be damn sure he's noticed you too. Like, really noticed you."

"You think so?"

"I know so. I wouldn't be surprised if you turned around one day and saw he was the one gazing at you like a lovestruck puppy." James chuckled at Logan's delighted expression. "It's kind of adorable, how much you like him."

Logan's smile fell. "Don't call me adorable!"

"Sorry . . ." James coughed. "Cutie . . ."

"Shut up!"

_**Step Two**__**, which supposedly comes naturally to anyone who isn't me.**_

"Now, this is kind of like being aloof about the whole situation," James explained.

"Aloof?"

"Yeah. Like, obviously make some moves on him. But don't be too pushy with it. You have to let him come to you. Sometimes it can be difficult to find the balance."

"Great, more balancing," Logan sighed.

"You can handle it! Flirting is easy, so easy that sometimes you don't even realise you're going it!"

"Okay, I guess I can try."

"Compliments kind of fall in with flirting, so make sure to mention something like that."

"Like, how his hair looks?"

"Something like that. But don't just compliment him on his appearance," James instructed. "That's really important; you don't want him to think you're shallow or sleazy."

"But can I say nice things about the way he looks? I love the way he looks . . ."

"Yeah yeah," James said quickly before Logan could drift off into a daydream. "But I'm just saying, don't let him think that's all you're interested in, when it isn't. Right?"

"No, definitely not! He's not just gorgous, he's smart and funny and—"

"Okay, no more of that. Just remember what I told you. Oh, and one more thing? Humour is key."

"I'm fucking doomed."

The next day, Logan sat down in the desk in front of Kendall's before English started. He felt his knees tremble. But he had some flirting to do, and meant business. Sort of. Oh god. "Hey," he greeted Kendall, who looked up and grinned at him. "What's up?"

"Nothing. Just sat down, for another boring day," Kendall replied jokingly. "And you?"

"I'm just looking at this blonde in front of me. He's got nice eyes." Logan's own eyes widened slightly after he said that. Where had that comment even come from?!

"Oh . . ." Kendall blushed a little. He smiled. "Thanks."

Logan just grinned at him, a whole casual air about him when in fact he was choking up inside.

"You know," Kendall said suddenly, leaning forward slightly with his arms folded on the table. "I noticed when you altered a little from the sweater vests you used to wear all the time. While I love that shirt on you, I kind of miss them. They were cute."

_He's so much better at flirting than me . . . wait, cute?!_

"I just figured it was time for a change," Logan shrugged, as of it were nothing. "The same thing all the time, I was getting a little bored of it."

"So, you're just in the mood for all things new?"

Logan nodded, cheeks flushing at the tone in Kendall's voice. "Totally." He returned Kendall's flirty smile. Then he let out a comical gasp. "All new stock in Victoria's Secret!"

Kendall spluttered with laughter, clapping a hand over his mouth as the teacher walked in. His eyes glimmered. Logan grinned at him. The rest of the class was slowly filling up, and Logan turned back around. But he gave Kendall another charming smile before the class started. Maybe he wasn't so bad at this after all. In fact, he felt really proud of himself. It really did just come naturally to him.

After the bell rang, Logan quickly packed his stuff and stod up, glancing behind him to see Kendall doing the same. As always, his desk was a total mess. He cursed as his pencil case tipped onto the floor and pens scattered everywhere. Logan hurried over to help him, picking up the pens and slipping them into the case, zipping it shut and handing it to him. "Thank you," Kendall replied gratefully, smiling and packing up his bag, closing it and lifting it up. "I think I need to get a little more organised."

"I think so too." Logan chuckled, slightly more nervous at this one. "We don't need some poor unfortunate student slipping across the floor on your pencils and crashing into the wall."

Kendall laughed. "Yeah, you're right." He waved goodbye to Logan, called, "See you!" and walked out the door, throwing a cute and flirty smile his way again as he did.

As Logan left the classroom, he suddenly paused, frowning and thinking hard. That last joke really wasn't that funny. In fact it was pretty embarrassing. Why did Kendall find it amusing?

He shook his head in bewilderment and walked over to where he saw Carlos waving at him. At first he'd been mildly offended at Logan seeking James' help. But not he was just desperate to know all. "How'd that go?" he asked in excitement. "You can tell James later, right now I wanna know!"

Logan grinned, biting his lip. "It went well, I think. He flirted back."

"He wants your D."

"No he does not!" Logan spluttered, cheeks red, horrified. "Don't say that!"

But Carlos was already laughing and trying to construct a song with rhyming lines. "What rhymes with Kendall . . .?"

_**Step Three**__**, which entails me staring at him like I always do, only absorbing more of the vital information.**_

"You're a good listener," Carlos told Logan as they headed across the lawn in front of their school. It was lunch hour, and they were discussing what James had told Logan in the simplest terms that very morning. "This one should be a breeze for you."

"Yeah," Logan replied, more confidently than he ever had before. "I think so too. For once, I'm actually kind of happy. This one is probably going to be a walk in the park in comparison to the others. So long as I don't start drooling or getting distracted . . . or saying stupid things. Or—"

"Okay, okay," Carlos said quickly, putting a hand over his mouth. "Easy there, just think happy thoughts. Remember, look good and feel good? And honestly, you look great."

Logan couldn't help smiling at him gratefully. "Thanks, Carlos."

"Anytime. Now, go! I see him over there." Carlos pointed to where Kendall was seated on a bench, reading a book to himself. Logan stared at him, smiling dreamily and wanting to just pick him up in his arms and run off to some gorgeous fairytale land where they could live happily ever after.

He was such a moron. He sighed. "Okay, I'll see you in class afterwards." He left the safety of Carlos' side and walked over to where Kendall was sitting. After walking considerably slower as he got closer to him, he finally managed to sit down and make his presence known to the blond. "Hey, Kendall."

Kendall looked up, sliding a bookmark between the pages of his book and shutting it immediately, smiling at him. "Hey, Logan! Nice shirt."

Logan's cheeks flushed. "Well, um, thanks. Yours too."

"What, this old thing?" Kendall chuckled, playing with the hem of his red plaid shirt. "Thanks. What's up?"

"Nothing really. I just saw you here, decided to come over. Socialise, and whatnot . . ." _Shut the fuck up before you say something dumber._

_Kendall, I really like your face. Please kiss me with it._

"Hey, are you dating anyone?" Kendall asked suddenly.

"No," Logan squeaked, eyes widening. "Um, w-why do you ask?"

"Oh, a friend of mine was wondering, that's all," Kendall replied quickly. "So, you're not?"

"No, no." Throwing in a casual laugh, Logan asked, "Are you?"

"No," Kendall replied, shaking his head and giggling a little. "Definitely not."

"Hmm, you're protesting very strongly," Logan teased. "No special boy back home in Kansas?"

"No, Logan." Kendall rolled his eyes. "Like I said, definitely not." Then his smile fell a little and he sighed. "The last relationship didn't exactly go very well."

Logan sat up straighter immediately and watched as Kendall propped his feet up on the bench, hugging his knees. This was it. His opportunity to be a good listener. Focus, Logan! "Why, what happened?"

My last boyfriend was really obnoxious," Kendall sighed, chin rested on his knees. "Like, he used to be rude to my friends all the time, he used to accuse me of cheating on him, he used to drag me away from everyone to make out with me behind whatever was convenient. It was annoying as fuck."

"That must have sucked," Logan said sympathetically.

"It did. When I broke up with him, he straight out asked me go the other guy was. I decided to just be honest with him and told him everything he did that pissed me off. I'm not sure how he felt about it, but hopefully he improved in his next relationship. It's not like I want him to be lonely forever or anything." Kendall turned to smile at Logan. "Sorry I dumped all that on you. I don't even know where it came from."

"It's okay. I'm happy to listen."

"Thank you. I appreciate that."

Logan grinned at him. And really, really wanted to kiss him. But he managed to hold it in and said, "You're welcome."

Kendall flushed and and tilted his head, resting his cheek against his knee. His bangs fluttered in front of his face and he just looked so damn adorable. "So, tell me about you now."

"What about me?"

"Any deep, dark secrets you can share?" Kendall teased. "Go on, I won't tell anyone."

Logan had come to realise that every one of these steps seemed to work both ways. He flirted, Kendall flirted back. He listened, Kendall was willing to listen too. Funny how these things happened. He felt completely at ease telling Kendall about all those embarrassing moments in elementary school, when people bullied him for his good grades. Kendall listened, sympathised, laughed at the jokes Logan made. Even if they weren't funny, not even a little.

_I guess this really is working after all._

_**Step Four**__**, which will surely cause my raging hormones to spiral out of control, damn testosterone. **_

"You mean like, putting my arm around him?" Logan's cheeks turned pink at the thought.

"Things like that, yeah. But in a casual, friend kinda way. Like if something comes up where you need to be a helpful friend, a hand on the shoulder would be a nice touch. Or an arm around him."

"Anything else?"

"Well, then you've got the cuter, more romantic things. Like offering to hold his jacket for him when he's putting it on. Or offer him a hand othe ice outside on the sidewalk. Stuff like that."

Logan thought about doing those things and began tingling from head toe. "Y-yeah okay, I can kinda watch out for opportunities and stuff."

James nodded approvingly, and Logan grinned.

Logan sat in English the next day, holding the novel they were studying in his hands and dully scanning the pages. Ms Collins stood at the desk, reading it out in a load and clear tone. Fifteen minutes to go, mercifully.

"Ms Collins," Jenny Tinkler piped up suddenly. Logan glanced at her; she looked a bit clammy and very pale. "I feel really sick, can I go to the nurse?"

Ms Collins nodded immediately, looking concerned. Jenny stood up, trying to pack her bag and knocking over the pencil case of the kid next to her in the process. As well as knocking him off his chair. She held her stomach, groaning a little and trying to hurry towards the door. Instantly the entire class clung to their belongings desperately. For some, however, the attempt was futile.

"Jenny, how about I just take you," Ms Collins said hurriedly, rushing over to her and holding her by the shoulders, guiding her safely out of the room. "I think everybody will be safer that way, including you."

The two left the room. The class was left sitting there, looking around in slight confusion and wondering what they were supposed to do now. After a few minutes of sitting there doing nothing, people began to chat amongst themselves. Logan glanced briefly over his shoulder at Kendall, to see him grinning and packing up his stuff. After about ten minutes of Ms Collins' absence, everyone else did the same and all shuffled out of the classroom, chattering but in low voices, as other classes were still continuing for the next few minutes.

"Glad that's over," Logan said to Kendall as they naturally fell into step beside one another. "I was about to pass out on the desk."

"You don't like what we're studying?"

"I do like to read, but no. Do you?"

"Well, I don't think the novel is all that exciting," Kendall said to him as they walked down the hallway. "But I do like his writing style, the way he phrases it and all—"

Logan spotted the wet floor sign before Kendall did. He realised that the janitor had just cleaned up and polished this floor just as at Kendall's next step, his feet slipped from underneath him and he fell backwards. "Careful!" Logan grabbed Kendall's arm, other arm looping around the blond's shoulders in the process. "Slippery floor," he said at last, chuckling a little because Kendall already knew that.

"Thanks," Kendall breathed, cheeks flushing. He straightened up, glancing down at his feet. "It's not that I'm a klutz, trust me; my shoes have like, no grip on them. Not the best, I know . . ."

"I'll give you a hand." Logan held his hand out, grinning and adding on a, "literally," to give himself more of a casual air though he was sure that his palms were already starting to sweat. Kendall smiled sweetly and took his hand, long fingers wrapping around it delicately. Swallowing and feeling the back of his neck grow damp, Logan slowly led Kendall across the wet floor, treading carefully himself because he was sure that in this muddled state, he too could fall over very easily. It wasn't ice, but it did the job just as well. At last they were in the clear and Logan reluctantly let go of Kendall's hands. "Well, there you go," he said at last. "Safe and sound."

Kendall's cheeks were pink. He bit his lip. "Thanks, Logan."

"No problem, kindle." Then in a sudden and scary bout of courage, he threw his arm around Kendall's shoulders, tugging him closer, grinning and saying, "It's my duty to save citizens like you from life-threatening situations."

At first, he wasn't entirely sure what Kendall would say. Then the blond gave a little playful smirk, the tiniest flutter of his eyelashes and said, "My hero."

Logan was about to a) collapse on the floor b) get a _major_ boner or c) plant one on Kendall's soft pink lips when the bell rang and the hallway began to fill. Kendall smiled again, a wider smile with a blush colouring his normally pale cheeks, before he said, "I've gotta get my books for music class. See ya around." And he slipped from under Logan's arm and walked off down the hallway.

Logan was too giddy to really care.

_**Step Five**__**, which I will never, ever be ready for.**_

"Logan?"

"Hmm?"

"I think you're ready."

Logan choked on his fries. "What?! No freaking way!"

"Don't be so negative!" James told him, taking a sip of his milkshake. They were sitting in Fun Burger, in a booth all to themselves. A few tables away were Kendall and his friends, Dak included. Kendall had given them a friendly smile and a wave when they walked in, and James insisted that it was a sign. Logan wasn't sure what to believe.

Well, one thing he did believe was that there was no way he was ready for this step.

"I'm telling you," James continued determinedly. "You're ready! He likes you, I just know it!"

"Likes me, maybe. In that way, probably not!"

"You're running out of time, dude! Dak's gonna be all over him as soon as he gets the chance, and from what I can see, he's gonna have a go soon."

Logan glanced over at where Kendall and Dak were sitting. Kendall was laughing loudly at some probably stupid joke he'd made. And Dak was grinning back at him. Even Logan was able to pick up that desire in his eyes, the determination in his expression.

"He's gonna make a move, I'm telling you. If you don't ask Kendall out at the next possible opportunity, there will be no opportunity. At least not for a long while."

"You really think if Dak asks him he'll say yes?"

"Look at the guy, I'm positive! Trust me."

Logan swallowed, staring over at Kendall. Of course, he could think of a million reasons that Kendall would choose Dak over him. He just longed for it to never, ever happen.

"Logan, look at me."

Logan did, reluctantly.

"You're ready," James repeated firmly. "I promise you."

"If you really think so . . ."

"I do!"

"Okay. I'll do it!"

"Great!" James grinned. "Tomorrow morning, before classes start. I know you'll have a chance because you always stare at him in the hallway, you both get there early enough—"

"That soon?" Logan squeaked. "R-really?"

"What did I say about the first oppurtunity?"

"I won't be able to sleep tonight . . ."

"Take a chill pill, you'll be fine." James rolled his eyes, checking his watch and standing up. "I've gotta get going. Just keep breathing. You'll do fine." Then he left the diner, door slamming after him.

Logan only waited another minute before getting up and following him. He didn't like seeing Kendall there, having the time of his life with his friends, Dak included. So he walked home and tried not to think about anything and everything that could go wrong.

_Just breathe, just breathe. It'll be okay. James has faith in you, and that kid knows everything on this subject . . . everything he's said has been true so far . . ._

Logan spotted Kendall in the hallway and almost had a heart attack. The blonde was leaning against the wall, headphones on, foot tapping in time to whatever he was listening to. Logan took the deepest breath he could, let it out, then took another, and another. Then somehow forced his legs to walk over to Kendall.

"Hi!" he greeted, trying to get his attention. "What's up?"

"Hi Logan," he replied brightly, taking his headphones out and shoving his iPod into his backpack. "Nothing much, how about you?"

"Oh, not much either . . ."

"Cool."

"Hey, listen . . ."

"Yeah?"

_Oh god, he's so cute . . ._ "Um . . . d-do you wanna go out on Friday? For like . . . a burger or pizza or something? You like those, right?" Okay, he was making a total mess of this.

"Yeah, I do . . ." But Kendall wasn't smiling. "But I can't . . . sorry."

"Oh . . ."

Logan could swear he could literally hear things crashing down all around him. There was his confidence, shattered. Dignity, smashed to pieces. His heart, that was gone too. He shouldn't known that nothing, not even a stupid apparently foolproof list, would ever make Kendall interested in him. He was too boring, too nerdy, too awkward, too everything! He felt like kicking something, maybe James, maybe himself for being such a loser, maybe Kendall for still being so damn perfect and so damn out of his league—

"What about Saturday?"

The smashing stopped. "Huh?"

Kendall gave a small laugh. "I wanna go out with you. I just can't Friday, I'm babysitting my sister while my mom goes to a high school reunion."

"Oh." So he hadn't been rejected?

THE LIST WORKED!

"So, Saturday?"

"Oh, right! Yeah, Saturday sounds great! Um, what time were you thinking of?"

"I dunno, five or six? Here, give me your phone."

Totally dumbfounded, Logan did, and watched as after about five months of lingering stares and awkward moments, Kendall Knight's phone number was finally saved in his contacts. "Text me on yours and we can arrange something, yeah?" Kendall was smiling sweetly at him, eyes sparkling like they always did.

"Sounds great," Logan managed to reply softly. The bell rang for classes to start and Kendall waved goodbye, heading up the hallway. Some minute or two later Logan finally managed to wave back, even though he was already gone.

"You look as if you've seen a ghost, what happened?"

Logan glanced to his right and saw James standing next to him. "I was talking to Kendall," he stammered, cheeks red.

"Oh yeah!" James stopped, frowning. "You don't look happy. Shit, did he say no?! I can't believe the steps didn't work, they always work!"

"Huh? No, it worked! He said yes!" Logan stared at him incredulously. "Do I not look happy?"

"No, to be honest you just look completely stunned," James chuckled.

"Well I'm happy. Really, really happy!" Logan stared laughing hysterically, the adrenaline from what he'd just done still coursing through him. "I'm over the moon! We're going on a date, this is amazing!"

"I'm happy for you," James said, turning to leave. "But if you don't get to class you're gonna be in deep shit. Resume your daydreaming when you get there!"

Logan made up an excuse for his teacher and sat down at his desk, doing just as James had said.

_Maybe I'm not such a loser after all._

_Who am I kidding, of course I am! But Kendall still seems to like me . . ._

Saturday evening came. The days leading up to it had been passed with a lot of texting, which Logan loved. He didn't have to worry about blushing or saying something stupid; he could type it out and think carefully before sending.

Now, Logan stood outside his favourite restaurant; a pizza parlour with big vases of flowers on most of the tables and some of the friendliest service he'd ever come across. Across the street, he spotted Kendall walking towards him. Eyes lighting up, he waved over at him, cheeks flushing when Kendall grinned and waved back, hurrying across the street towards him.

"Hi!" he greeted, eyes sparking. "I'm not late, am I?"

"Nope, just on time," Logan teased, holding out his hand. "So, let's go in and grab a table?"

Kendall nodded, taking his hand. The two walked inside and over to a nice table by the window, sitting down opposite each other and picking up menus. "I've never been here," Kendall said at last, looking around. "But I really like it. Good choice."

"I come here all the time," Logan replied softly. "I just . . . didn't think I'd ever come here with you."

Oh god, what was he saying?! Confessing your sheer desperation was never good first date thing! Not that he'd been on many first dates . . .

"Why not?" Kendall asked, eyes leaving his menu. He smiled jokingly. "Am I too intimidating?"

"No, I'm just way too shy," Logan admitted. "Not very brave either."

"I think it's cute."

"Seriously?!"

"Well, yeah. I like that we're different. If we were too similar I'm not sure how well it would work out." Kendall grinned at him, eyes flickering away for a moment before returning to him. "I hope you know what you're going to order, there's a waitress coming this way . . ."

"Oh, right!"

They ordered their food, got their drinks and kept talking. Kendall was perfect. Logan was a loser. But Kendall seemed to like him anyway, which was a great confidence booster. Kendall loved sports, Logan didn't. Logan loved books, Kendall didn't. Kendall loved music, Logan didn't. But they both loved cats. That was something, at least.

"This looks really good," Kendall said when they got their pizza. "You're good with dates, you know. I'm surprised you haven't been on more."

"Like I said, I'm shy. Not good at asking people out. I've been working at it for a while . . ."

"Yeah, I suppose to some people it comes naturally," Kendall shrugged.

"To tell you the truth," Logan chuckled at last. "I was just determined to ask you out before Dak got the chance to."

"Dak?" Kendall looked puzzled.

"Yeah," Logan stammered, wondering if he'd said the right thing. "I just . . . I mean, he obviously liked you. And he was gonna ask you out and I thought if he did before me then . . ."

"But Dak did ask me out." Kendall was still frowning, totally confused.

"What?!" Logan gaped at him. "When?" he demanded.

"About a month ago, the middle of January. Why are you looking at me like that?"

"So . . . you said no?"

Kendall nodded, laughing. "Why do you look so surprised?"

"Because I am . . .?"

"I didn't really see him as boyfriend material. We're just friends." Kendall shrugged, giving him a flirty smile.

Logan stopped to think for a minute. Hold on. If he thought back, he realised back in mid January, that was after the look. With the flirting, and the listening . . .

_Did he reject Dak because he had a crush on me?!_

"You've zoned out."

"Sorry! I'm just . . ." Logan realised he was probably grinning like a lovestruck idiot. Though that was what he was, through and through. "I'm just happy right now."

"Well, good." Kendall smiled sweetly, picking up a pizza slice. "I'm happy too."

_Well James, that's one thing you got wrong. But for once, in a good way._

He decided not to tell the brunet what Kendall had told him. Maybe he would, in the future. But for now he was happy to keep that extra bit of victory to himself.

_**Step Six**__**, which I still don't understand, but frankly I don't care! Whoopeee!**_

"Congratulations, Logan," James cheered, handing him a can of coke before chugging back a large gulp of his. "You got the guy. But you're not done yet."

"Oh, yeah." Logan's eyes wondered. "There's one step left. I forgot about it!"

"I've got the list in my pocket." James took it out, unfolded it and placed it on the coffee table in front of him. "Take a look."

Logan did. "What makes his eyes light up?" he read aloud.

James nodded. "See, now you've got him. Which is great and all, but really only half the work is done."

It went without saying that Logan found this news extremely devastating.

"I'm not saying it's as difficult as the rest of that was, because it isn't really. I guess it depends on how motivated you are." James folded up the list again. "You got him, but now you have to keep him. Keep him into you, because it won't happen entirely by itself. Just partly; obviously he likes you somewhat if he agreed to go out with you. But if you want him as a boyfriend, you still have work to do. Thing is, even though this one step is pretty much half the work of the whole thing, it shouldn't be as difficult."

"Why not?"

"Because this time, it's a two-way street from the start. If he's worth it, he'll be paying attention to what makes your eyes light up too."

"Oh . . . okay. It makes sense. I get what you mean." Logan smiled tiredly and suddenly heard his phone ring. He glanced down at the contact, grinning at the name with the little smiley face beside it. "It's Kendall, hold on." He ignored James' smirk and waggling eyebrows and picked up, "Hey."

_"Hi Logan,"_ the voice on the other end greeted cheerfully. _"What's up?"_

"I'm just hanging out with James," Logan answered breezily, glaring at the brunet who was now holding his right hand with his forefinger and thumb linked in a circle, jamming the forefinger of his other hand through it repeatedly. What a jackass. "How about you?"

_"Well,"_ Logan heard a chuckle, _"I was actually gonna come over and see you but I wasn't sure if you were home. I'm about to put my shoes on."_

"Oh!" Logan cleared his throat. "I'll see you soon, then. Can't wait!"

_"Sure thing, Logie. See ya!"_

"Bye," Logan replied, cheeks flushing at the endearing nickname. He hung up and rolled his eyes at James, who had spent the last few seconds running the palms of his hands over his chest and throwing his head back in false pleasure, moaning in a high-pitched voice which resembled that of a female porn star and not Kendall, at all. "Idiot."

"I can't help it," James smirked, poking him. "It's too much fun. So you're gonna go meet him? Remember what I told you!"

"Yeah yeah, what makes his eyes light up. I'll keep an eye out." Logan put on his jacket and stood up. "Thanks for everything James, really."

"Don't mention it, Logie." James winked. "It was my pleasure."

"See ya Monday," Logan called to him as he left the living room, walking out of James' house and down the street in the direction of his own. The day was chilly but bright and sunny, and he was able to stroll along without having to put his hands in his packets for warmth. As soon as he reached his own home, he dashed up the stairs to his room and looked in the mirror, hurriedly fixing his hair and making sure he didn't have any stains on his clothes. He was just checking his teeth for anything embarrassing when he heard his mother calling from downstairs, "Logan, sweetie! Kendall's here to see you!"

"I'm up here," Logan called back, throwing himself onto his bed and opening up a book, as though he hadn't been getting himself ready.

A few seconds later the door opened and Kendall hopped in, black coat on over his red plaid shirt, grey beanie on his head and skinny jeans covering his long legs. Hey," he greeted sweetly, strolling over and sitting on the bed beside him. He gave Logan a quick little peck on the lips, making his cheeks flush. "How are ya?"

"Oh, I'm great," Logan grinned, closing his book and scooting back, giving Kendall room to sit beside him. "And, um, how about you?"

"I'm great too. I was in town, actually, this morning. I just popped home to get a snack before I came over here but . . ." Kendall bit his lip, smiling a little sneakily. "I got something."

"Oh?" Logan raised an eyebrow.

"Uh huh." Kendall reached into his large coat pocket and pulled out a little wrapped parcel. "It caught my eye, I guess. Now trust me, I'm not one of those obsessive boyfriends that's going to go around buying you diamond encrusted watches just because it's a Tuesday, but . . . I just saw this, and I thought you'd like it." He handed over the parcel and Logan took it.

He opened it up and unwrapped the parcel. Inside was a little keychain of Batman, a sullen look on his face as always. His arms and legs flopped about as Logan bounced it up and down, and he had to laugh. Such playful movements and such a serious character. Kendall was smiling. "Well?"

"It's great. I can put it on my keys, pass them to me?" Kendall did, and Logan carefully fastened the keychain on. He yanked off a second chain attached to his keys, belonging to an old keychain that had broken off long ago. "Thanks, Ken. But, how'd you know?"

"Well." Kendall gave a small laugh. "This is gonna sound kinda crazy . . . but when we were talking the other day, and you were telling me about the different Marvel and DC heroes? When you mentioned him, I dunno, I just saw it in your face. I thought he might be your favourite."

"You saw it in my face?" Logan echoed.

Kendall nodded, blushing. "Yeah. Is that creepy?"

"No, that's great. Really." Logan leaned in and kissed him, hand placed ever so lightly on his thigh, making the blond shiver slightly and kiss him deeper. _He knows what makes my eyes light up. How?!_

"So," Logan said breathlessly when they pulled apart. "We could watch the first movie on my laptop. You know, the Christian Bale versions?"

"I've heard of them." Kendall grinned. "Sounds like fun. So if you're Batman, who am I?"

Logan rolled his eyes, laughing and giving Kendall a light tap on his large nose. "You're Catwoman. Duh."

"So I wear a leather catsuit?"

"Can't say I'd object."


End file.
